Ever since the days of the Walkman, our headphones have been a staple of our backpacks. Here our our top 10 hacks for increasing their sound quality, making them more comfortable, and carrying them around hassle-free.

9. Keep Them Clean

It's gross to think about, but the fact of the matter is your headphones (especially the in-ear variety) can get pretty dirty with all that earwax and oil you expose them to. You'll want to make sure your headphones stay clean, for both sound quality and hygeine purposes. There are a few different ways you can keep your headphones clean, whether it's something simple like wiping them down with some gentle soap or actually taking a toothbrush to the metal part, if it's especially dirty. Photo by Bill S.

7. Use Paracord to Keep Them Tangle-Free

One of the world's universal annoyances is that your headphones always seem to tangle themselves into a bird nest of cords. One clever solution is to run them through some paracord. You'll have to bust out some DIY chops for this, and you may experience some quality loss, but it's a pretty great solution to keep a cheap pair of earbuds travel-friendly.

6. Turn Them Into Speakers with a Few Paper Cups

Every once in a while, you find yourself in a situation where you want to listen to music from a pair of speakers, but all you have are your earbuds. All you need is a few paper cups, some tootpicks, and a bit of tape. It won't exactly turn your headphones into a pair of Boston Acoustics, but it will make your music a bit more audible in a pinch. (Original Post)

5. Make them Exercise Friendly with DIY Over-Ear Wraps

If you're a runner, you probably like to listen to music when you jog. The problem is, earbud-style headphones don't exactly like to stay in your ear as you bounce up and down. If you've got a few cable ties handy, you can fix this problem by fashioning a few over-the-ear wraps to keep them steady.

3. Turn Your Cables into a Zipper Case

If the above paracord method doesn't sound ideal to you, this remarkably clever method is another great alternative. With just a long zipper from some clothing and some sewing chops, you can wrap your cables in the zipper so that they not only stay tangle-free, but actually turn into a small case for your phone or MP3 player. (Original Post)